But what isn’t hogwash is how Kenyans feel about such groups of people. We have been polarized to react acidicly negatively to Freemasons – or as many call them, Devil Worshippers & Satanists – because they supposedly drink blood drained from virgin children’s necks and pray in dark rooms with no windows while having orgies with abducted prostitutes. But how much of this stigma is really true? Here are 10 things you need to know about Freemasons before you pass judgment.

1. Freemasonry is NOT a religion
Possibly the most common misconception. There’s no Mason God or anything weird like that. It’s a Fraternal Organization – much like Academic Fraternities -that began some 400 years ago. You are however required to have a religion before joining so you’ll find plenty of Christian Masons, Muslim Masons, Hindu Masons…etc.

2. Freemasonry is NOT Satanism
In fact, Satanism is one of the few religions that isn’t exactly allowed in freemasonry. Freemasons are required to believe in a “Supreme Being” and to the best of my knowledge, Satan doesn’t quite qualify as being Supreme enough. Besides, most of their practices go against the code of the masons.

3. Freemasons are NOT idolatrous

They don’t worship the symbols or their Grand Master; they don’t sacrifice chickens to pagan gods or …whatever crazy thing they get flack for.

4. Freemasonry is NOT a cult

This should really have been #2. Dear Kenyans, stop calling everything occult. Occultism is, simply stated, some mystical search for deeper truth in life; magic, alchemy, witchcraft & wizardry and all this. It normally involves a lot of secrecy and very little reasoning(because you see, reasoning is counter-occult; “you can’t see the deeper truth with these eyes”…).

5. Freemasonry is NOT a secret society

They have a headquarters with an address and a list of members. They are in your Yellow Pages and online. Seriously. What kind of secret is that?

6. Freemasonry is NOT exclusive or inclusive.

Nobody forces you to be a freemason and no one will stop you. Anybody can walk in there and apply to join the fraternity. In fact, one of the requirements is that you came there of free will. If your references check out, you take the oath and you’re in. Just like any other fraternity.

7. Freemasons are NOT malevolent

There’s this theory that most masons are thugs and crooks of the highest order. One of the requirements of joining the “fraternity” is that you are a morally upright person. You even need character references from reputable people saying you are a stand-up guy before they let you join. I fail to see how most of our politicians would qualify.

8. Freemasons are NOT special;

They don’t control your world. They aren’t even international. Each region of Freemasons operates independently from the others. There are societies out there that are international and a lot more powerful and scary; Freemasons are not one of them.

9. Jay-z is NOT a Freemason
Neither is Beyonce, Obama or Rihanna or whoever else you were thinking. Now, there are some very famous masons ranging from Mozart to Bob Dole and you can find that list here.

10. Freemasons are the least of your worries

Seriously, in a hierarchy of groups of people Kenyans should be concerning themselves with, a society of architectural philosophers ranks pretty low. There are satanists and occultists out there; but even they are the least of your problems. People just want to focus on something “extraordinary” – a group of outcasts that we can unit and shun – and honestly that’s not only naive and prejudicial, it’s counter-productive.

But what about all the symbolism that looks like Satanic stuff?

Simply put, symbols are what you make them be. Who would’ve thought before the 2005 referendum and the 2007 electoral violence that Oranges, Bananas and Hammers would have such vast symbolic significance? In some places those are still 2 fruits and a tool. So to go and say that the all seeing eye represents the Devil’s optician or something of the sort is just ridiculously outlandish. I could say it represents the center button on the Xbox360 controller and means it puts me in control of my opponents, but I’d just be being ridiculous as well.

How do you know all this stuff? Are you a mason too?
Nope, I just did what most of you have been too scared to do.

I asked*.

I actually know quite a few Masons and Mariners in Nairobi and Kenya at large – one of whom is a priest, actually – and I wouldn’t hesitate to say that they rank among some of the better standing people I know.

The point being, don’t waste your time on stupid hype. The facts are out there. It’s a Google-Wiki generation; learn something. You have legs, eyes and a mouth; see for yourself, ask, listen. Don’t let knowledge – or the lack thereof – be your downfall.

Besides, worrying about what other people do with their free-time is really kinda lame.

PS: Jay-z actually has a song out there titled “Free Mason” with Rick Ross & John Legend. I had started writing this before the song released and then completely forgot about it until I heard the track.

*I didn’t just ask; I’ve actually done a reasonable amount of research on the matter in the past few years. Ironically, amounted to the same exact amount of knowledge I got from chatting with a freemason about 2 days ago.

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52 thoughts on “The Truth About Freemasons in Kenya”

I totally disagree with you iCon. On what basis? You are not a freemason. Neither am I. So neither of us can call them satanists nor otherwise. But upon refering to high ranking masons as you did (by asking) I think you should read or reread the extensive works of 33rd degree freemason Manly P. Hall. Or to bring things much closer to home, check out my blogpost on the history of freemasonry in kenya.

I’ll address the Satanist part and then…I guess we can move from there.

Certain fundamental truths hold: Supreme Being and such. But the main reason why I say “Freemasons are not satanists” is precisely because of the basis of Freemasonry. Are there Satanists who are Freemasons? I would assume so. Just like I’d assume that certain criminals work for the Police and certain sick people are doctors. But not make the blanket rule the vice versa.

Because there is a rule and then there is an exception. What I have stated, to the best of my knowledge, are the rules. The exceptions will forever be up for contention. And like everyone else, I will be contending them too.

I actually am familiar with Manly Hall’s work but only in so far as symbology is concerned. It’s been my understanding that his work on Masonry was actually written before he became a mason himself(he published when he was 27 and became a high-ranking mason at 52 and got his 32nd degree in his 70’s…some 40 years later)…so I fail to see how that contradicts what I’m saying. If anything….

The problem with the topic of Freemasonry is that there will forever be Masons and Anti-masons and all of them will argue with irreconcilable fervency. The other problem is that – like religion and politics – it is largely belief-based and philosophical.

So I concede that I may be wrong on somethings; in fact, I expect to be. But at the same time, I’m eager to hear what the right version is. The facts minus opinion.

finally some sense in the world. I agree with icon. My dad was a freemason and I can tell you no we didn’t eat human remains for supper. On many occasions I joined him when he went for their meetings @ the so feared white building near serena and I can tell you from first hand experience all the devil worshipping stories are bullshit.

But kenyans will be kenyans. I learnt a long time ago neva argue with a kenyans about religion. Look @ the church’s understanding of the constitution??? The ‘saved’ pple in my family forced my dad to leave the club which was unfair.
All I’m saying if you don’t understand it don’t speak on it…just ask! Thanks icon.

I also don’t believe they are devil worshippers, suck blood and all that but’d want to know what they are. And even if they were, discrimination, hate, prejudice should not be vented on them.

However, If they are not all this that you outline, what are they? If it’s kind of a club like you wanna show it, what do they do when they meet? It takes more than appearing in Yellow Pages to unveil yourself, so that doesn’t wash away their being a secret society. What they do in secret, you may want to ask them, but don’t say they are not a secret society. It is a secret society.

They commonly like to say “It’s not a secret society, just a society with secrets.” True to this, they will tell you what they believe and what they’re intentions are. Some will even tell you when they meet and what they discuss. I remember stumbling onto a FM forum that had entirely too much information on it, likewise, I’ve met masons, especially in the states, who lack any sense of holding back when they address the subject. What I’ve come to realize in all this is that different chapters have different rituals and different agendas. Whereas Prince Hall masons may focus on minority scholarships and afrocentric charities, Kenyan lodges have different agendas. But there are still a lot of questions that remain unanswered, without questions. Which is why we need to keep asking and stop assuming.

About Satanism, I don’t wanna get into that. And if Manly Hall’s secret teachings of all ages is what you are refering to then that’s a tip of th iceberg. His talks about egyptology and freemasonry and non-materialistic beings from an ether are what incline me to say that the masons are much more than what they seem, at least at the topmost echelons. To the subtle wellread mind, one would realise instantly that from the masonic checkerboard, they -the masons- imply knowledge of crossdimensional travel. This point is further emphasized in islam, the historic accounts of solomon’s temple and it’s building, builders and hiram abiff.

I definitely see your point. I had heard actually heard about the checkerboard theory but I’ve failed to find comprehensive material on it. You have any materials you can recommend?

The (re)building of Solomon’s temple is a little bit contentious though – or at least, it’s not been made clear to me because of the number of contradicting theories revolving around it.

I can’t remember authoritative books but there’s so much on youtube you can watch if you know what you are looking for. Eg there’s this guy called Abdullah Hashem who’s put up hundreds of videos about illuminati secrets for example the checkerboard stargate and stuff. Worth checking out. Or read on aztec religions and why they built certain monuments in a certain way. Fascinating people the ancients were. The meaning of occult according to the concensus library slash dictionary that is wiki mean hidden. The same way one can’t teach a youngling everything about say algebra, they have to progress up the steps is the same way a 3rd degree can’t be intellectually at par with a 26th

Yep. Kinda like you’re told light travels in a straight line before you learn about waves…and energy and photons and time and space…etc etc. Fully agreed.

I’m actually a huge fan of reading about ancient civilizations & organizations and how they influenced modern religions. Particularly in reference to the history of Islam. Slightly off topic, I had a really enlightening debate with a colleague yesterday about how Violence in Islam may actually be one of the more powerful tools used by groups seeking to hegemonize – or just completely dominate – the world. But that’s a debate that would ruffle entirely too many feathers for a monday.

There’s also an interesting piece out there about the symbolism of the temple of solomon and freemasonry. I forget who wrote it but it’s the only one that sticks out as an authoritative article that I read. I’m sure a google-wiki quest would uncover it.

I admire the purpose the illuminati have when it comes to completely destroying religions such that the core message that joins all religions is forgotten and people focus on the slight differences and go off the top and slaughter each other. That’s the control aspect of religion. Keep the masses fighting amongst themselves while they stroll leisurely to the bank. I love enlightening discourses, si i be invited for the next one? :)

Among other things. Illuminati allegations are tricky though. Most of them are somewhat baseless or hinged on something that is entirely too general. But both those characters are alleged masons. In fact, there was some lengthy article somewhere that said Obama was a 34th degree mason and that he’s George Bush’s cousin.

Whenever conspiracy theory is spouted, the mysterious “Illuminati” (along with the Bilderburgers, The Trilateral Commission, the Council of Foreign Relations, and a plethora of others) are most often named as being responsible. Ironically, however, while many, many people can name those ostensibly belonging to the other conspiracy groups, the “Illuminati” is always left hanging as some secret, shadowy entity which no one can quite describe. Interestingly too, no one can quite identify what specific acts can be attributed to them – everybody’s got their own lists. And no one in 225 years seems to have left the organization to reveal its secrets. Pretty powerful stuff….. (If you’re not hearing the theme music for the X-Files right now, it’s a CONSPIRACY!!!)http://www.masonicinfo.com/illuminati.htm

The Illuminati were dead and buried by 1797. The only thing keeping it alive is the conspiracy theorist…

Whoever wrote this must be crazzy or an agent of the lucifer! Illuminati is so wide and I think u have been illuminated. this people rule our social,political and religious lifes. You say its not a religion and yet we all know that they practices so many rituals and we know some of them. Some of the logos you have potrayed are well know to be logos of the lucifer and we all know that lucifer is the Leader of all the angels of Satan. Jay Z and so many celebrities and politicians are masonic.

Hi Chalo. I’ll ignore the “crazzy”, “Lucifer” comment and chalk it up to…I donno, misguided rage. I think you may be confusing Illuminati and Freemasonry. You may also be confused on the definition of a religion.

That said, I really am intrigued by what you have said. Give me some facts I can work with so we can further the debate. Cheers

Jesus! The ignorance. typical small minded Kenyan thinking. No evidence just a rant and allegations. Perhaps you want to tell us all about the celebs that you just KNOW are masons. And even then, so what?

By the way, care to enlighten me on all those children and elderly people that are witches?

Yeah Canibus also calls himself a Freemason plenty of times in his songs…33 Three’s, Rip Vs Bis.
These are people whose very occupation is to play with words, you think they put random stuff in there to fill a bar?

Excellent post. Freemasonry does have secrets BTW. Although they cannot be communicated, they must be learned or discovered by each individual Mason.

As for the Satanism or Lucifarian hooey, well it’s just that. One thing that Freemasonry is ‘against’ is superstition.

You may have already guessed that I am a Freemason. And what I can say is that a tell tale sign of Youtube watchers and the uneducated is:
1.) The higher degrees argument. There is no degree ‘higher’ than the 3rd or Master Mason degree. All other ‘degrees’ are part of appendant bodies that are subject to the will of the Grand Lodge of that jurisdiction. So if you would picture a capitol T. The vertical would be the 1st 3 degrees as in Entered Apprentice, 2nd Fellow Craft and 3rd Master Mason. After that you may join appendant bodies like the Scottish Rite, the York Rite, etc. They offer their own initiatory rites and further explain what has been shown to all 3rd Degree Master Masons. If one looses his membership as a master Mason he is auto automatically out of all other appendant bodies, enough said.
2.)Some will foist the so called high degree Masons like Manly P. Hall and Albert Pike as the end all of Masonic Authority…poppycock! No one man speaks for all Masons.
Many P. Hall was a self avowed mystic and philosopher. His first book in Masonry was written when he was barely 21 years old and some 30 something years before he became a Mason.
The agent of Lucifer crap comes in primarily due to Leo Taxil’s, still believed by some, infamous hoax to make the Catholic Church look stupid. The man admitted his fraud and had a great laugh about it for years.

Of course I speak from my position as a Freemason in the US. In other parts of the world there are differences. In France there are two Masonic bodies, mainly. The Grand Orient of France and the Grand Lodge of France. The Grand Orient has marked differences in their attitudes and practices, so much in fact that the UGLE and most US jurisdictions do not recognize them as regular Masons.
In the end there is good and bad in any organization and no Freemasons will ever tell you that their membership have all been saints. We like many segments of society have our bad apples.
The secret society stuff is always lurid and in many places Freemasons have sought to shed this misconception. I have been to meetings all over the world as a Freemason and although rituals and practices differ, I am always made to feel welcome and in some instances an honored guest. No matter where I go, however the same feeling pervades. The brotherhood of man under the Fatherhood of God.
The charge by neigh-sayers that the “Grand Architect of the Universe’ term is some code for a masonic god is just superstition and speculation. In fact it is generic term adopted for the one God. So that those who would be perpetually at a distance due to religion, race or caste can meet and enjoy fellowship, brotherly love and work together for the betterment of mankind. Of course that begins with bettering ourselves. Becoming better citizens, father, husbands. This strengthens the community and mankind, kind of like a ripple in a pond.

The Masonic Info site given in the post (http://www.masonicinfo.com) is a good place to start for dispelling the idiotic and wacky claims that have no basis in fact. But a better recommendation would be to open one of those funny objects that are made of paper with words called a book. There are quite a few good works by Masons and non-masons explaining Freemasonry and much better that I every could.

I like the way your (collective) mids work. I love the post for stating things in a non hysterical and logical way. It would be nice to see equally lucid and logical rebuttabls rather than the ‘I know they are masons and they are evil and eat babies’ type nonsense.

Kenya is on it’s knees because its people refuse to think for themselves or even (gasp) reason.

We regurgitate nonsense that we hear without ever once doing independent research on the issue. Case in point, anything to do with God or religion, devil worship, other tribes, the constitution referendum etc

Addressing Tin the Mason, yeah we know about the first 3 degrees and the further scottish and york rite levels but pray tell us; what is the great work of freemasonry? If it’s all fraternal and all brotherly love, why the exclusivity and secrecy when you know it causes problems for your image as a whole and why is the elevation ritual from one degree to the next done between jachin and boaz? I happened to happen upon a mason recruiter once, despite claims that freemasonry isn’t ‘evangelical’, who deigned from answering questions such as these and more leaving alarm bells ringing in my head.

The great work of Freemasonry is to take good men and make them better men. This makes society as a whole better.
As for the ‘secrecy'; well simply put, one must seek or search for truth and wisdom. It is not just handed out with a manual and your sent on your way.
I mean this not in a disparaging way but most people don’t give a hoot about their fellow man truthfully. Freemasons kinda make that a top priority.
Also if one is a seeker of truth, then all they need to do is knock on the doors of Freemasonry and they shall be open to him.

I am not sure what exactly you refer to in the elevation ritual done between Jachin and Boaz.
As you might already know the legends or myths of Freemasonry hearken back to the building of King Solomon’s temple. The two pillars you speak of are denoted as being on the outer porch of the temple and described in detail in Biblical texts. Jachin meaning “God establishes” and Boaz meaning “strength”. These pillars are only a mentioned briefly in a lecture after a brother is passed to the 2nd degree. Nothing nefarious about them.
Also Masons don’t recruit. One must come and ask to join of their own free will and accord. So I have a hard time with your statement about happening upon a Mason recruiter.

There are some things I am obligated not to reveal. That does not mean you cannot find the answers on line or in books with thousands written on the subject. I just cannot tell you. The things I cannot tell you are certain modes of recognition and some details of the ritual beyond that feel free to ask.
I am not sure what you mean by ‘evangelical’ as Freemasons are specifically banned from proselytizing in lodge. You see religion (and politics) are subjects that divide men. Freemasons seek to unite men in a common bond of fraternity. So these subjects are not allowed in Lodge. before or after Lodge you may hear brothers discussing these subjects. But we all treat each other equally. That is another tenant of Freemasonry that we hold pretty dear. All are equal in Lodge from the newest member to the Master of the Lodge.

And I am sorry you have bells ringing in your head, you really should have that looked at.

Oh and my agenda as you put it is to help educate the superstitious and ignorant about Freemasonry to try to put an end to mindless speculation and innuendo.

“The great work of Freemasonry is to take good men and make them better men. This makes society as a whole better.”

By their fruit shall ye know them says the bible. Nuff said.

“As for the ‘secrecy’; well simply put, one must seek or search for truth and wisdom.”

So there IS more to freemasonry than brotherly love eh? And it comprises wisdom? Secrets kept away from the uninitiated and guarded literally with your lives? What is it exactly that you people know that you could die for and if it’s that great why keep it to yourselves instead of bettering society as a whole instead of select men? Oh wait, that’s right. You are not allowed to tell us. oh well, the O.T.O guys don’t mind sharing their truths with the despised goyim so I guess it works out for both of us.

“I am not sure what exactly you refer to in the elevation ritual done between Jachin and Boaz.”

You must be really down there in ranking aren’t you? I have a feeling you wouldn’t know how to respond were I to subject you to the protocols as per due diligence. Jachin and Boaz are central to the ceremony when a mason goes up a degree. The initiate sits in the veil of Isis between the pillars and what happens as he recites oaths binding him to a gruesome outcome if he spilt the beans?

I have been approached once and set up twice to join the order. The same thing the US army used to do to naive college students and getting them to draft by luring them with falsehoods. Don kid me man.
And if you think that what you people are playing with is innocent or you are unaware of what powers you mess with toying with energies… I suggest you read a Divine Book of your choosing and pray hard, not to GAOTU, rather the Creator of Heaven & Earth for guidance.

With the attitudes of some of the posters here, it would not surprise me if they are difficult when it comes to being approached for membership.
Again I am speaking from a US point of view and our membership is not viewed with any sort of derision or suspicion here. So as a result we’re pretty open about it. I cannot speak to conditions in Kenya, but even in France it has been and issue for public figures so they keep their membership to themselves. Seems silly to me but it is another culture after all.

It goes down to whom you believe now don’t it? Like they say, a magician will never show you his tricks. I’ll go on and add; he’ll put you in the coffin and really stab you to death before he does.

I liked this line from said rebuttal: “Folks, if you believe that Mr. Obama IS a Mason – Prince Hall or otherwise, can you PLEASE provide ONE SINGLE SHRED OF EVIDENCE?”
Now, take the same line and retract say Mr Charles Njonjo’s declarations of being one and apply his name to the above statement. What do you get? *crickets in the background* Exactly. Silence.

Sorry for reviving this topic. Anyone heard of 2B1ASK1? It’s the evangelical slogan of masonry. We cannot say Freemasonry is evil just like we cannot say Christianity is good. That is to say that just like the head of the church have their secrets which they won’t share with the flock (thus demonology classes only for adepts and the symbolism behind the garb they wear not being shared with the whole church) Freemasonry has it’s secrets at the highest levels or degrees shared only to those that are deemed eligible to learn and be enlightened. Many ex-masons have shared stories of their bad experiences within the order, should we dispell their accounts because there are masons who’ve never seen anything less than good in the brotherhood?

how u gon talk about the streets,when u been in prison?how u gon defend them if u aint one?hv u read morals and dogma?motto being order out of chaos,.it gets deeper after the blue degrees(1st to 3rd) just b’coz we knw its near serena doesnt mean it aint a secret, so don give us that crap that it aint a secret, u givin info like a pr guy talkin to wananchi,well, even the non ,masons are enlightened.. We knw they wanna control the world, shiit, they control it,from the 13 bloodline families, and i’m a jayz fan since 96 reasonable doubt so yeah, he is a mason thats for sure..we aint dumb!!

Greetings. Thank you so much for giving more light on the work of freemason to those who have wrong info about this fraternity group in Kenya. You are doing great work in creating the true picture of Freemason

All hail David, the light-bearer. I bet you were pleased when the perfect ashlar headed the promulgation ceremony parade. Kosher freemasons need to get off that ‘black-man syndrome’, claiming you all being persecuted. Noone cares. Dead this discussion iCon. Misuse abounds.